This motel was absolutely charming and just 1/2 block from the beach. It is a motor court so you can drive your car right to your door. The rooms are spacious and sparkling clean. We had a misunderstanding of what we were renting when we first arrived, but the front desk folks cleared it up immediately and were very gracious. The but, is that the walls are very, very thin. The first two nights were delightful, but the third night had guests next door. I heard everything. Not fun.

We just got home after a one night's stay at the Marina Beach Motel. It is an older motel property, like so many other in Santa Barbara, but you can tell that the owner is spending a fair amount of money on upkeep....both in and outside.

Room: we were in #5, which we understand is one of their larger units with a king and a sleeper sofa. My wife felt that the bed was really uncomfortable; I slept fine. The room features a coffee maker, a micro wave, mini fridge, a flat screen TV and what appears to be a recently refurbished bathroom with a LARGE shower. Nice!

The Grounds: Nice and clean with plenty of parking. The motel features a grassy area right in the middle of the property with a wooden table, several chairs and benches. Perfect for relaxing or enjoying a cocktail of your choice...!!!

Lobby/Staff/Breakfast: Check-in was quick and efficient. A nice lobby doubles as the breakfast area with a few outside tables. I'm not crazy about the "free breakfasts" being served by many motels, but I have to say that the breakfast being served by the Marina Beach Motel was (much) better than an average motel breakfast.

Free Bikes/Pet Friendly: The motel offers free loaner bikes to guests. This is really a great feature. The motel is also dog friendly...in certain rooms, I believe. The pet charge is $15; I can't remember if that's per night or per stay.

Location: The location is PERFECT...right on Bath Street. You are 1/2 a block away from the harbor and the nearby beach. The Wharf and State Street are five minutes away...walking.

Better yet, Emiliol's, a fabulous Italian restaurant, is only 1/2 a block away as well...on Cabrillo. Unfortunately, Emiliol's is not dog-friendly, but....we do take-out. Try their "Flatbreads"....one is with smoked salmon and another one features figs, gorgonzola and proscuitto. VERY, VERY GOOD...!!!

In summary: This is a "motel" more so than an "inn", but...what's wrong with that. Several features....especially the LOCATION is better than average, so I'm rating this property as a FOUR...!!!

We planned to spend 1 night at the Marina Beach Motel as we arrived late in Santa Barbara and very hungry so we did not want to search for a hotel. We ended up stay a few more nights because the Marina Beach Motel is so delightful, clean, and right near the beach. You turn off the main beach road and there is the Marina Beach Motel. The staff were all very helpful and seemed to really be happy working there - the manager and owner were around at times and it seemed that they have an excellent working relationship with the staff which flows to the guests.

The first time we stayed here, we had no complaints. Sure, the room was a bit small, but it had a great jacuzzi tub, and the price wasn't too terrible considering the location.

The second stay was a completely different story.

1. They no longer allow dogs in the jacuzzi rooms. Massive bummer, considering it was our anniversary - and we desperately wanted the use of a jacuzzi tub.

2. There was feces on our comforter. We didn't complain - we just didn't use it, because the room was pretty small - and with two people and two dogs, a lightweight blanket and sheet was more than sufficient.

3. Our dogs on a hypo-allergenic raw food diet. We brought enough food for them for three days in Santa Barbara. Only problem was, we weren't aware that the refrigerator wasn't working until it was too late. When we reported the problem, a child came to our room to take a look at it - and he tried plugging the refrigerator in to different outlets. It still wasn't working. He said that something, (a surge protector perhaps?) had to be replaced. He said he'd try to see if another refrigerator was available too, but he didn't think one was. He never came back to fix it. All of our dogs food, and special snacks we brought for ourselves were ruined. The stench from the rotten dog food and dairy products we'd brought for ourselves was overwhelming. We had to purchase hamburgers and what not from local restaurants to feed our dogs. Needless to say, it was upsetting.

Combined with the fact that the bathroom was literally the size of a tiny closet, it was less than stellar.

To make matters worse, my husband spoke with the manager on the day we left, to complain about the refrigerator that was never fixed, amongst other issues we had during our stay. He agreed to comp two nights. This, we were pleased with. It was only fair considering the issues put a major damper on our fifth anniversary celebration.

3 1/2 weeks later, I get a voicemail from the manager stating that he wants to discuss the matter further... that he was vacationing and hadn't been able to discuss it with his staff during that period - but that he had finally gotten around to doing so, and that their story didn't line up with ours.

Seriously? You're going to believe you're incompetent teenage staff and accuse us - second time guests of making this stuff up? Seriously?

My husband didn't call him back immediately, so he charged us for one of the nights of our stay. I emailed him to explain that he had been grossly misinformed by his staff. They insisted that the refrigerator had been fixed. Um - not so. We had no refrigerator for one minute of our stay.

Despite me sending a detailed letter explaining what really went down yet again, he wrote back and said that the refrigerator had been fixed - and that we would only be comped for the one night it hadn't been working.

I responded by saying that his staff lied to him. The refrigerator never worked.

Now I know, a busted fridge isn't the end of the world - but it did inconvenience us greatly because of our dogs- and between that and the feces on the bedspread, we were pretty appalled at being charged $200 a night. And who in their right mind agrees to comp two nights, and then changes their mind nearly one month later? That's just completely asinine.

We are disputing the charge and we will never return to this place again.